Until the End
by TWDGFan828
Summary: [This is on hiatus for now] (Nick x oc/Luke x oc) Clementine and Kenny are not in this story. The story is focus around Kenzie and Niki, they are trying to survive, they are all alone. Until they meet the cabin group. Will they survive? Or will they suffer the same fate as everyone else? (Please Review!)
1. Chapter 1 - Are The Woods Really Safe?

Two girls were running then stopped.

One girl had long brown hair, hazel eyes, and white skin. She was wearing a black tank top and dark jeans with black converse. And she was taller than the other girl, she was holding a bat, this girl's name was Kenzie.

The other girl had long black hair, dark brown eyes, and darker skin than Kenzie. She was wearing a dark gray shirt that says "Normal People Scare Me" on it and black jeans with black boots. She was shorter than Kenzie, she had a long knife in her hand, her name was Niki.

 **Kenzie's Point of View**

"Do you think we got away from the walkers?" Kenzie was panting as she said this.

Niki turned around "I don't know but, we are safe for now."

Kenzie started to walk "At least, the woods are safer than the cities." Niki nods her head and puts her knife in her backpack.

Niki and I have been surviving the apocalypse for a long time, I think it's been 2 or 3 years since the apocalypse started. We have been alone, surviving together for awhile now. But we are best friends, I don't know what I would do without her.

Kenzie smiles and looks at Niki.

"What is it?" Niki asked

Kenzie almost laughs "oh nothing... I am just thinking...that's all…" Kenzie started reaching into her backpack and pulls out something. She pulled out a bag of swedish fish candy. "Here…"

Niki got really happy and grab the bag from Kenzie's hands "where did you get the candy?"

Kenzie turned to Niki and smiled "I found it on a supplies run and I wanted to surprise you...after all they are your favorite."

Niki started to eat some "thanks…"

Kenzie grabbed a piece "you're welcome…"

* * *

Kenzie started to laugh "I can't believe you ate the whole bag…"

Niki was starting to smile a lot "I couldn't help it...I love them…"

Kenzie stopped her laughing "well...they are your favorite…"

Niki nods her head and stops. Kenzie looked at her "what's wrong?"

Niki put her hand in front of Kenzie "shh…" Kenzie started to hear the noise, Niki was hearing. The bushes near them were moving, something was there. Kenzie and Niki moved slowly towards the bush.

It was a dog, the dog turned around and walked towards them. The dog growled at them and Kenzie moved her hands, she tried to calm the dog "It's ok boy...it's ok…"

The dog barked at them and Kenzie kneel down in front of the dog "where are your owners?" The dog heard a noise and turn his head.

The dog walked off a little, Kenzie looked at the dog "what's he doing?"

Niki turned her head to look at the dog "I don't know…"

The dog ran off and Niki yelled something out "where are you going!?"

Niki and Kenzie went after the dog and he stopped in front of a camp. Niki and Kenzie decided to look around the camp for any supplies. The camp had nothing useful, there was just toys, trash, and tents that had been ripped apart.

The dog was barking at something and they found a walker tied to a tree. Niki took out her knife and killed the walker. Kenzie saw a knife in the walker's shoulder and took it out. She cleaned the knife and put it in her back pocket.

Last to check was a trash can. Niki looked at it "we have to check everything I guess." Kenzie nods her head and rolls up her sleeves.

Kenzie dig around in the trash can and found a can. She smiled and turn to Niki "Found something…"

Niki looks at it "can of beans...nice" The dog barked and they headed to a log. They sat down and the dog was sitting on the ground. Kenzie took the knife out of her back pocket.

She looked at the can "please don't be bad…"

Niki looked at the can too "let's hope it's not…"

Kenzie open the can and sigh in relief. Niki took a scoop of beans and ate it. Kenzie took some and started to eat. She then, looked up at the dog "I guess you are pretty hungry too." Kenzie scoop some of the beans and put her hand out "here you go…"

The dog knocked the can out of Kenzie's hand and it fell to the ground. The dog started to eat from the can.

Kenzie picked up the can "hey...don't eat it all" The dog growled and all of a sudden, he attacked Kenzie. She fell to the ground and the dog was biting her arm.

Niki jumped up from the log "Kenzie!"

Niki kicked the dog but, he wouldn't let go of Kenzie's arm. She turned around and saw Kenzie's backpack near the log. Niki ran to it and took out Kenzie's handgun.

Niki aimed it at the dog and shot it in the head. The dog fell, dead and Niki ran over to Kenzie "you okay?"

Kenzie looked up at her "I'm fine…" She looked down at her arm, it was bleeding badly "damn…"

Niki looked at Kenzie's arm but then, looked up at Kenzie "we have to go…"

Kenzie nods her head and gets up from the ground. They grab their stuff and start walking.

* * *

Niki turns to Kenzie "we need to find a place to rest and take care of your arm."

Kenzie nods her head and looks up, she smiles when she sees a light. She starts to run toward it. Niki runs after her and they both stop behind a tree.

Niki was panting "why did you just run off like that?"

Kenzie points in front of her "look…" Niki looks and sees a cabin with the lights on.

Kenzie smiles "there has to be people in there...we can ask for their help…"

Niki looks down "I don't think this is a good idea...they could be bad…"

Kenzie looks at the cabin "fine...you stay here...and I will go…"

Kenzie started to walk towards the cabin before Niki could say anything. Kenzie saw a rock on the ground and threw it at the cabin, it made a loud sound.

She was holding her arm as a guy with brown hair walked out "who are you?"

Kenzie looked at her arm, she was losing a lot of blood "hey...I need help...I…" Kenzie didn't get to finish her sentence as she fell to the ground. Before, she faints all she heard was the guy saying "Ah, shit…"


	2. Chapter 2 - I Just Need Help

_She was holding her arm as a guy with brown hair walked out "who are you?" Kenzie looked at her arm, she was losing a lot of blood "hey...I need help...I…" Kenzie didn't get to finish her sentence as she fell to the ground. Before, she faints all she heard was the guy saying "Ah, shit…"_

 **Kenzie's Point of View**

Kenzie was starting to open her eyes and saw people standing over her. An old man in green, a big black man, a woman who looks to be pregnant, and a guy in a red hat, holding a rifle. The rifle was close to her head and she could hear them talking.

"Don't you tell me that! Not with what fuckin' happened."

"Would someone mind telling me what the FUCK is going on here?"

"We don't know this girl…"

"Now hold on, Rebecca."

Rebecca? That must be the name of the pregnant woman.

"We got this, don't worry."

"Like hell you do. Did anyone even think to ask where she came from?"

"Luke said, she was asking for help before she fainted…"

Luke? He must be the guy with brown hair that I saw.

"For all we know she could be working with Carver!"

Carver? Who's that?

Kenzie started to lift her head and decided to start talking. She needed to tell them that she was bitten by a dog and that she needs help.

"I…"

The rifle goes off and the bullet misses her head by an inch. The guy in the red hat that was holding the rifle, looks at her, shocked. Kenzie looks back at him with wide eyes. The old man takes the rifle away from the guy in the red hat.

"Keep your finger off the trigger, boy!"

Someone came out of the cabin door, it was the guy with brown hair, Luke I think his name was.

"Whoa! Whoa! What the fuck!?"

"You idiot! Every lurker for five miles probably heard that!"

"You're the one tellin' me to fuckin' shoot her!"

"Everybody just calm down for a second!"

The guy with brown hair, Luke ran towards Kenzie, he had a worried look.

"Hey, you okay...?"

"I...my name is Kenzie...I was bitten by a dog, I just need help, that's it…"

The pregnant woman, Rebecca looked at her with an angry look.

"Dog bite my ass!"

Before Kenzie could say anything, Luke beat her to it.

"We got a doctor right here, okay. He'll have a look."

Luke turned to the group "Now what the hell is wrong with you people?! Okay, she's just scared!"

"We're all scared, Luke. Don't act like we're the one's being irrational cause we don't buy this bullshit story."

"No way she's survived out here on her own! Why are we even arguing about this!?"

"Let me take a look."

"It's okay, go ahead, he's a doctor."

Kenzie let go of her arm and showed it to the doctor.

"Damn, that must've hurt."

The doctor started to look at her arm "Hmm...whatever it was, it got you good."

"This isn't how we do things, man. When you're bit, you get put down. End of story. I'm not going through this again."

"No one's suggestin' that."

"We could take her arm off. I know that worked for a cousin down in Ainsworth. We could try that."

"It won't do any good. You'll just be makin' it worse for the girl."

"It's crazy. No one's gonna volunteer to do that."

"I would. If it means saving her life."

"Then what? How would we know it worked?"

"Just let Carlos have a look first!"

Carlos? That must be the doctor's name.

I have to talk to someone, maybe I could talk to that guy in the red hat. He almost shot me but, that doesn't make him a bad person.

Kenzie turned to the guy "I am telling the truth...I am not lying…you shouldn't cut it off without knowing…"

"This is bullshit."

Kenzie saw the cabin door opening so, she looked up. A girl with raven hair appeared at the door and looked at her "Who's she?"

"Sarah? What'd I say? Stay inside."

The girl had a hurt look on her face and closed the door. The doctor, Carlos went back to checking Kenzie's arm. Kenzie looked at him "I don't mean to be any trouble. I just want to stop the bleeding and then I will go. You'll never see me again, I promise."

"And where exactly would you go?"

"I can take care of myself."

Rebecca turned to her "Clearly."

"Look, I dunno what the hell took a bite outta her, worst case she turns and we can deal with it."

Carlos walked towards the group.

"So? What do you think?"

"Was it a lurker?"

"A bite like that...could be anything. Only one way to find out."

"How?"

"We wait."

"What?!"

"By tomorrow morning, if the fever's set in, we'll know if she's gonna turn. In the meantime we can lock her in the shed."

Kenzie looked at her arm and then, the group. "What about my arm…? It needs to get cleaned, and stitched, and bandaged…"

"The girl is in bad shape, Carlos."

"We have all that stuff inside the cabin, we could probably get by with…"

"ALVIN, please…"

"But yeah, we can't do nothing."

"I'm not wasting supplies on a lurker bite. If it turns out you're telling the truth, I'II clean it and stitch it up for you in the morning."

"But…"

Carlos walked off and Luke looked at her "I'm sorry, It's the best we're gonna get."

Kenzie's face looked sad and she saw the guy with the red hat grabbed his rifle from the old man in green.

"Finger off the trigger, son."

"I ain't your son."

"Don't be like that, man."

"It's alright. Boy's got his mom's temper."

Kenzie smiled a little bit to that and saw the guy turned to her "Come on."

"This is just a waste of time. You'll see. And when she turns, I ain't gonna be the one cleanin' up the shed."

Kenzie followed Luke and the guy in the red hat was behind them. She didn't want to talk to Luke so, she just looked at the other guy's rifle. When they got to the shed, she went in, and Luke closed the doors. She could still hear them talking.

"Why are we doing this? It's so fucking dumb."

"Because it's safer this way. And I'd rather be sure."

"Yeah, but safer for who?"

Kenzie couldn't hear them anymore after that. She looked down at her arm, it was still bleeding. She started to hold her arm and moved some of her hair out of her face, she sat down on the floor.

"Niki…"


	3. Chapter 3 - Promise

Niki was still watching everything from behind the tree. Kenzie's backpack was beside her and her backpack was still on her back. She saw two guys put Kenzie in a shed, the two guys and the rest of the group went back inside the cabin.

 **Niki's Point of View**

"I knew this was a bad idea...damnit Kenzie…"

Niki picked up Kenzie's backpack and started to walk to the shed, she opened the doors of the shed. Kenzie saw her and Niki put her finger to her lips.

"Shh…"

Niki closed the doors of the shed and smiled at Kenzie.

She walked towards her and Kenzie hugged her, tightly. Niki smiled again and hugged her back.

Niki put the backpacks down and looked at Kenzie.

"I told you this was a bad idea...I knew we couldn't trust these people…" she said

"Niki, they're just scared…" Kenzie said

"Ok…but, they didn't need to lock you in a damn shed!"

Niki sighs and looks at Kenzie's arm "We still need to take care of your arm."

Niki looks in her backpack "I have thread and bandages but, we still need something to clean it with and a needle."

She closes her backpack and looks back at Kenzie "Stay here, I will be right back."

"Where are you going?"

"Well, I need to get supplies…"

"You are going to steal from them?"

Niki put her hands on Kenzie's shoulders and looks her in the eyes "We have to, we have no choice, Kenzie…"

"Ok…" Kenzie said as she nods her head.

Niki was about to leave when Kenzie said something.

"Wait." she said

Niki turns back around "What is it?"

Kenzie gives her a hammer "Here."

"Where did you get this?" Niki asked

"I found it in here, I thought you might need it."

"Thanks." Niki said with a smile.

Niki goes out of the shed and starts to head towards the cabin.

* * *

Niki sees where she can go under the cabin.

She pulls the plywood but, there was nails.

She uses the hammer and takes out the nails.

Niki heard a walker near by so, she quickly went under the cabin. She starts crawling until she sees where she can get inside.

She takes out her pocket knife and uses it to open the trapdoor.

Her pocket knife gets broke but, it opens.

She goes inside.

Niki quietly opens the door.

She looks around and hears talking coming from a door.

She didn't care to listen because they were probably talking about Kenzie.

Instead, she goes upstairs.

Niki opens one of the doors, it was a bathroom.

She goes in and closes the door. She opens the medicine cabinet and sees a needle.

"It's clean." Niki said to herself

She grabs the needle and puts it in her pocket.

"...I'II still need something to keep Kenzie's arm from getting infected." she said to herself again.

Niki was about to leave but, decides to listen to the door first.

"That man sometimes, I swear!"

After hearing that, she hides in the small closet.

Someone comes in, it was the pregnant woman.

"Damnit…" she said as she holds her head.

She goes to the sink and uses the water.

"Just need to have this baby and...oh god."

She washes her face and looks in the mirror.

"Let it be okay...and...let it be his."

After a few seconds, she left and closed the door.

Niki comes out of the closet.

Interesting…

She leaves and quietly closes the door.

* * *

Niki opens the next door and sees a girl that is her age.

"Who are you?"

Niki goes inside the room and closes the door.

"Hi, can you please help me?" Niki asked

"I don't know if I'm supposed to talk to you, my dad can't know."

Niki nods her head.

"Help me and I won't tell him." Niki said

The girl was silent for a few seconds.

"My friend was bit by a dog." she said

"Sounds scary…"

"My friend could die if we don't take care of it. Do you understand?" Niki said to her

The girl looks at her.

"I just need something to clean it up with. I bet it would be with the rest of your medical supplies." she said

"Yeah, it is."

After a few seconds of silence, the girl said something.

"I'II help you."

"Thank you."

"I'm Sarah."

Niki doesn't want to trust any of them but, this girl seems nice.

"I'm Niki and my friend is Kenzie."

"We're friends."

Sarah smiles and got up.

"Right? We can be best friends...I haven't met another girl my age since way before."

"Yes, we're friends." Niki said with a small smile.

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Me too, friends."

Sarah holds up her pinky finger.

Niki walked towards her and she wraps her pinky finger around Sarah's.

"A pinky swear is forever."

After Sarah gives her what she needs, Niki leaves.

"Thanks, Sarah." Niki said as she closes the door.

"I better get back to Kenzie now." she said to herself


	4. Chapter 4 - Taking Care Of You

" _I better get back to Kenzie now." she said to herself_

 **Niki's Point Of View**

Niki was about to walk down the stairs when something caught her eye.

There was one last door.

It couldn't hurt to look inside.

She walked towards the door and opens it.

She goes inside and looks around.

Niki opens the table drawer and sees a watch inside.

She takes it and puts it in her pocket.

She looks around more but, there was nothing else interesting so she left the room.

Niki walks downstairs and goes back outside.

* * *

Niki goes back to the shed and sees a hole in it.

What the…?

Something was behind her so, she turns around.

"Kenzie? Don't scare me like that." Niki said

"Sorry, I got worried." Kenzie said

"Did you forget that the doors were unlocked?"

Kenzie went red in embarrassment. "Oh."

Niki just laughed a little bit and grabbed Kenzie's uninjured arm.

"Let's go." she said

Kenzie nods her head.

They went into the shed and closed the doors.

"We need to take care of that arm." Niki said to her

Kenzie looked at her "What's that?"

Niki smirked and took it out of her pocket.

"It's a watch, I found it." Niki said

"Niki, that doesn't belong to us. You were only supposed to steal supplies." Kenzie said

Niki sighed and gave the watch to Kenzie.

Kenzie looked at it for a second and then, she puts it in her backpack.

* * *

They sit on the ground and Niki takes out the supplies.

"This is gonna suck." Niki said

"Yeah…" Kenzie said

Niki looked at Kenzie "I'm going to try to be careful but, you gotta hold still, ok?"

Kenzie nods her head.

Niki picks up the peroxide and pours it on Kenzie's arm.

Kenzie cries out in pain.

Niki puts the peroxide back down, she threads the needle.

"We have to sew it up...it's too deep." She said to her

Kenzie slowly nods her head.

Niki starts sewing Kenzie's arm.

Kenzie couldn't help it, she kept crying out in pain.

After four more times, Niki was done sewing Kenzie's arm.

She uses her teeth to cut the thread and then, she puts the needle down.

Niki grabs the bandages and wraps them around Kenzie's arm.

"Done." Niki said with a smile.

She noticed that Kenzie was still crying a little bit.

Niki hugged her "It's okay...it's done…"

They stop hugging and Kenzie smiles.

Niki smiled back but then, sees something behind Kenzie.

Niki pushed Kenzie out of the way and got in front of her.

It was a walker, it must of crawled though the hole in the shed.

The walker stands up and starts walking towards them.

Niki kicked the walker and it fell backwards, onto the ground.

She didn't have time to grab her long knife from her backpack so, she used the hammer instead.

She hit the walker in the head with the hammer.

Niki hits the walker in the head over and over. She hits the walker one last time and it's dead.

She hears the doors open.

"Holy shit."


	5. Chapter 5 - We Can't Trust Them

_Niki smiled back but then, sees something behind Kenzie._

 _Niki pushed Kenzie out of the way and got in front of her._

 _It was a walker, it must of crawled through the hole in the shed._

 _The walker stands up and starts walking towards them._

 _Niki kicked the walker and it fell backwards, onto the ground._

 _She didn't have time to grab her long knife from her backpack so, she used the hammer instead._

 _She hit the walker in the head with the hammer. She hits the walker in the head over and over._

 _Niki hits the walker one last time and it's dead._

 _She hears the doors open._

" _Holy shit."_

 **Niki's Point Of View**

Niki takes the hammer out of the walker's head.

She drops the hammer and turns around.

She sees a guy with brown hair looking at them. The rest of the group is walking towards the shed too.

"Who are you?" The guy asked

"She's my friend." Kenzie said

The guy looked at Kenzie's arm.

"You patched yourself up?"

"Where did you get that stuff?"

"Did she steal from us?"

"Calm down, she hasn't done anything to us."

"You left us no choice." Niki said

"You could've just left."

Niki had never been this angry. She puts her hand into a fist.

"Niki…" Kenzie said

Niki looked at the group with angry eyes.

"She was never bitten by a walker! She only asked for help and you locked her in a shed! You left her out here to die!" she said

Everyone except for the pregnant woman looked sorry.

"Bring her inside and I will take a look at her."

Niki ignored the guy trying to talk to her.

Everyone went inside.

* * *

 **Kenzie's Point Of View**

As Carlos was checking Kenzie's arm, she was looking at Niki.

Niki was still angry.

Then, Kenzie looked at the guy with the red hat. His rifle was on the table and he seemed to be thinking about something.

"How she'd look…?"

"Her suturing skills need some work, but otherwise I'd say she should be fine."

"So it wasn't a lurker bite?"

"If it was the fever would've already set in and her temperature would be through the roof."

The guy in the red hat walked out and Luke followed him.

Kenzie looked at her arm.

"I wish you wouldn't have done what you did." Carlos said

"She was hurt and you weren't helping." Niki said

"Because we considered her a threat. Which she was. Maybe she still is."

Niki got an angry look and got in front of Kenzie in a protective way.

"No, I'm not." Kenzie said

"We put you in that shed out of concern for the safety of our loved ones."

Carlos turned around and looked at Niki.

"And you persuaded my daughter to steal from us. I'II give you the benefit of the doubt, but there are a few things you need to know about my daughter."

"Ok…" Niki said

"She isn't like you two. You may not get that initially but once you're around her for a while you'll understand. If she knew how bad the world is...what it's really like out there...she would...cease to function."

Carlos is silent for a second.

"She's my little girl. She's all I have left and I would ask that you stay away from her."

"She needs to grow up sometime." Niki said

"You do not know what she needs. Rebecca was worried that you two might be working for someone else. That your being here was no accident."

Carlos got closer to them.

"I guess we'll find out, but one thing I know for sure...you are not to be trusted."

Carlos walks over to the door and then, looks back at them.

"Stay away from my daughter."

He opens the door and leaves.

* * *

Niki turns to Kenzie "We can't trust them, we need to leave…"

"Can't we just stay until my arm heals more?" Kenzie asked her

Niki sighed "Fine."

Kenzie smiled and Niki smiles a little bit too.

"Oh...you're still here."

Kenzie looked at Rebecca.

"I wouldn't get comfortable if I were you."

Niki just rolled her eyes.

Rebecca walks closer to them.

"You got what you came here for, now go."

Niki gave her a death glare.

And then, Rebecca left the room.


	6. Chapter 6 - The Past

**Kenzie's Point Of View**

They see Luke walk in with two bowls in his hands.

"Hey uh...I brought you guys some food if you're hungry." he said

They go and sit at the table, Niki was sitting by Kenzie. And Luke was sitting across from them.

Kenzie and Niki started to eat.

"That's gonna leave one helluva scar."

"It doesn't bother me." Kenzie said

"Nice."

Kenzie started eating again when she heard a door open.

She looks up and sees the guy with the red hat, standing there.

He walks over to her.

"Hey, look. Um, I just wanted to say I'm sorry for...well...for being a dick out there. I got kinda aggro and that was definitely not cool." he said as he put his hand on the back of his neck.

"Nick's been known to go off every once in a while. Don't hold it against him."

"I guess we all have our moments."

"You definitely had one out there."

So, his name is Nick.

Kenzie looks at him "You were just protecting your friends, I get it."

"I didn't mean to be so harsh. I just...we had a bad experience once."

"We've all had bad experiences." Niki said, quietly and coldly.

Kenzie turned to him "What happened?"

Nick sat down next to her, he was looking at her, he had a sad look in his eyes.

"Nick lost his mom. We took care of someone who'd got bit."

"It was my fault. I…"

"It was no one's fault. We thought we could control it, but...we couldn't. And then she turned and his mom was standing right there and she got attacked...there was nothing we could do about it."

Kenzie had a sad look on her face.

"Anyway, hopefully you understand." Nick said as he got up.

"Yeah, I do." Kenzie said

Nick smiles a little bit and then, he leaves.

Kenzie starts eating again.

"So, since you're pretty much on your own. What's your plan?"

"We're thinking about moving on." Niki said

"Well, you're welcome to stay here if you want. Get healed up and take some time to sort things out."

"Do you think everyone else will be okay with it?" Kenzie asked

"They'll just have to deal with it."

Niki smiles a little bit to that and then, she started eating again.

"So...what happened to your parents…? If you don't mind me asking. You're just so young…"

"Well...um…" Kenzie was starting to say but, she could tell that Niki was angry.

"I am not talking about this!" Niki said

"Niki…"

Niki just walk out the door and went outside.

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't of asked…" Luke said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's okay...she just needs space...she'll come back…"

Luke nods his head and Kenzie sighs.

"I will tell you…" Kenzie said

"You don't have to…" Luke said

"No, it's fine...you might understand us better if you hear…"

Luke gives her a sad look.

"Niki and I were in middle school when this all happened. We were in class just laughing and talking when we heard screaming coming from outside. Everyone started panicking and most ran out of the classroom. We heard more screaming as we left the class. There was blood everywhere, we grabbed our friends and left the school."

Luke looked horrified as he listened.

"We went to my house first but, my parents were dead and Niki's house was next door so we went there. Her parents were dead too but, they looked worse than mine. We grabbed a lot of supplies. We made a group with our friends and we all tried to make it but, it didn't work out in the end. It all went wrong...Lucy commit suicide, Janet ran off with most of the supplies. Ruby, Marky, and Olivia...they all died."

She started to cry "It was only me and Niki left...we decided to try the woods...to see if it was safe…"

She smiled at Luke "That's when we met you guys…"

Luke looked down, maybe he was thinking about what she said.

"...well I'm sorry to hear that."

Kenzie nods her head.

Someone walks in, I think his name was Pete.

"I hate to interrupt, but I'm out there standing watch and I can't help but notice this place is lit up like a goddamn beacon in the middle of the woods."

"Yeah, it's time to turn in anyways."

"Get your winks while you can 'cause we're goin' fishing at first light. A couple of fresh brookies for dinner? Mm, wouldn't that be nice."

Luke left the room.

Kenzie smiles at Pete and he looks at her.

And then, he leaves too.


	7. Chapter 7 - Separated

**Kenzie's Point Of View**

They were walking in the woods towards the river.

"How ya' holding up? I heard you got an earful from Rebecca last night."

"What's her problem?" Niki asked

"Well, she's got a lot on her mind, lately. Bringing a baby into a world like this?"

"How far are these fish traps?" Niki asked him

"It ain't much further."

Kenzie looks at the rifle that Pete is holding.

Pete looks at her "Anyone teach you how to shoot?"

"Yeah, but not a rifle!" Kenzie said

"Well, that makes sense. Less kick. This thing would probably knock you on your ass."

Niki laughed a little bit.

"Nick was about ten first time I took him huntin'. Came across this beautiful 13-point buck just standin' there on the ridgeline. The boy takes the rifle...lines up the shot just like I taught him...then I hear him start whinin'. He turns to me and he says 'I can't do it. I can't shoot it, Uncle Pete. Please don't make me shoot it'."

Kenzie smiles, 'Cute' she thought.

"Aww...that's sad." Kenzie said

Pete smiles and nods his head.

"Hey!" Nick said as he runs towards them "Why didn't you wait?"

"You want us standin' around while you piss on a tree? You know where the river is, boy."

They start walking again.

"Anyway, so I go to grab the gun out of his hand before this big buck runs off when BANG! The gun fires. Boy nearly gut shot me. And of course the buck gets away."

"What're you goin' and tellin' them this shit for?"

"Cause you almost blew her face off yesterday. Seems relevant. Tryin' to let them know it's nothin' personal with you."

"Why are you always giving me a hard time?"

"Because you're always givin' everyone else a hard time."

"I apologized already. She accepted."

"It's fine, he apologized." Kenzie said with a smile.

"I wanna hear the rest of the story." Niki said

"You're always trying to embarrass me."

"You're doing a good enough job of that on your own."

Nick walks pass Pete, hitting his shoulder.

"Leavin' us again?"

"I know where the fucking river is!" Nick said as he walks ahead.

"So anyway...I found that buck later that season. Shot it right in the neck. Brought it up to my sister's figurin' she'd want freeze some of the meat...Nick didn't speak to me for weeks."

Pete paused for a second and then, looks at them.

"Sometimes you gotta play a role, even if the people you love hate you for it."

"You should tell him that." Kenzie said

Pete looked like he was lost in thought for a second.

"UNCLE PETE!"

They all ran towards the river.

* * *

They see Nick standing there.

There was dead bodies everywhere near the river.

"Nick...Jesus, Mary, and Joseph."

Pete checked one of the dead bodies "Fulla holes".

"Who do you think did this?" Kenzie asked

"Not sure yet. But it ain't your average gang of thugs, that much I know."

"...Think about it. You're Carver, what do you do?"

"Who's Carver?" Niki asked

Nick and Pete looked at Kenzie and Niki.

They checked some of the bodies.

Kenzie walks over to Nick "Can I help?"

"I got it."

She nods her head and looks at the sandbar. Her eyes widened a little bit.

"There're more out there!" Kenzie said

"This wasn't no rinky dink pissin' match"

"What was it then?"

"FUBAR"

"Where are you going?! We need to get the fuck outta here!"

"Gotta check the rest."

"What?! Why?!"

"Calm down and think about it, son."

"Calm down?! We've gotta get out of here now!"

"Nick's right, this doesn't look good." Kenzie said

"No it doesn't look good but, they might just be inclined to tell us who did this. We gotta do this now."

Kenzie and Niki jumped across the rocks. They go to the side Pete is on.

"Stay here, keep searchin' these."

"This is a dumb idea." Nick said as he backs up a little bit and looks around.

"You know Nick, I don't like this either, but sooner or later, you're gonna have to realize a simple truth."

"What? That you're an asshole?"

"That nobody in this world is ever gonna give a goddamn whether you like somethin' or not, you gotta grow up, son."

"Whatever…" Nick said as he walks somewhere else.

Pete turns to them "Come on, you two. You wanna be useful, keep a lookout on that tree-line. Whoever did this might still be out there."

"We'd be more useful with guns." Niki said

"I don't doubt it."

"At some point you guys have to trust us." she said to Pete

"Hell, I trust ya. But not everyone's at that point yet. Give 'em time."

Pete looked at the other side "Damnit, more on that side. You two check out these ones. See if there's anything on 'em that'll tell us who they were."

Kenzie and Niki both nod their heads.

* * *

Kenzie was checking a dead body when she heard Pete yell out.

"Pete!"

"I'm fine, I'm fine! Just...just lost my footing! Damnit...god-damnit."

Kenzie and Niki saw Pete was bitten.

Walkers were coming towards Pete and Nick.

"Shit! Lurkers!"

Nick and Pete were yelling things to each other.

Kenzie and Niki were back to back. She grabs Niki's arm.

"Niki, go help Pete. I'II help Nick." Kenzie said to her

Niki nods her head and runs towards Pete. Kenzie runs towards Nick, a few walkers almost grabbed her as she ran.

She gets to Nick and they stare at each other.

Kenzie sees that Niki helped Pete, they are okay.

"We'll meet you back at the cabin!" Kenzie yelled to Niki.

She sees Niki and Pete start running away.

Nick shoots a walker that was coming towards them.

Kenzie grabbed Nick's arm and they run into the woods.


	8. Chapter 8 - Stuck in a Shed

_Kenzie runs towards Nick, a few walkers almost grabbed her as she ran._

 _She gets to Nick and they stare at each other._

 _Kenzie sees that Niki helped Pete, they are okay._

" _We'll meet you back at the cabin!" Kenzie yelled to Niki._

 _She sees Niki and Pete start running away._

 _Nick shoots a walker that was coming towards them._

 _Kenzie grabbed Nick's arm and they run into the woods._

* * *

 **Kenzie's Point Of View**

They find an old cellar and go inside.

Kenzie and Nick closed the doors but, walkers were banging against the doors.

They try to hold the doors closed as the walkers try to get in.

"Nick, find something!" Kenzie said

Nick nods his head, Kenzie holds the doors as he walks to the back.

He comes back and pushes a box against the doors.

When they see the walkers can't get in, they both signed in relief.

Kenzie smiled at Nick.

Nick sits in a chair.

"Do you think they're okay?" he asked

Kenzie's smile fades as she remembers that Pete is bit.

She decides to tell Nick, he deserves to know.

"I think so...but…"

"But…?" He repeated

"Pete is bitten…" Kenzie said

"What…?"

"He got bitten back at the river but, Niki is with him so he should be okay." she said to him

Nick looks down with a sad look on his face.

"Nick…?" Kenzie said with a worried voice.

Nick wouldn't look at her.

Kenzie understands, he is sad and needed time to himself. Nick looks like he is lost in thought.

"What do we do now?" Kenzie asked him

"I don't care."

"I'm gonna look around." she said

"Knock yourself out."

Kenzie started looking around, she first looked at the still.

"It's a still."

She turns around to look at him "I know what it is."

"The fuck you do."

"What is it?"

"It's for makin' booze. But that rig ain't fit to piss in."

Kenzie looks at the window and sees a walker near it.

"Do you think they'll break through that window?" she asked

Nick didn't say anything.

Kenzie looked at a box.

"The food is rotten." she said to herself

And then, she moved the plywood out of the way and saw jars with something in them.

"What is that stuff? Let me see."

Kenzie picked up one of the jars and walked over to Nick. She gave him the jar.

Nick opens the jar, he smells it. Then, he drinks it and slams his fist on the table next to him.

"Whiskey."

Nick took another drink of the alcohol.

"Now what?"

"Oh, fuck if I know. We wait, I guess."

Kenzie nods her head and sits down on the ground, she leans her back against the box.

She looks at Nick and then, closes her eyes to rest.

* * *

 _-A few hours later -_

Kenzie heard glass shattering and opened her eyes.

It was dark outside, they had been here for a few hours.

She doesn't hear the walkers banging against the doors anymore.

She sees Nick throwing the jars against the wall. She walked towards him and saw that he was drunk.

He was sitting on the ground, his back leaning against the wall. Empty jars were near him too.

Nick throws another jar against the wall across from them.

Kenzie gets a worried look on her face.

"Nick, stop! You're scaring me…" she said to him

He picks up another jar and was about to throw it against the wall but then, he puts it down.

Nick has a sad look in his eyes.

"I had to kill my mom...sounds weird when I say it out loud…"

Kenzie gets a sad look on her face and then, sits on the ground.

"Luke always used to push me. I never wanted to go into business with him. I remember when he sold me on it. His big plan, some fuckin' plan. A case of beer in he just said 'Nick, we're burnin' daylight'. And that was that. After six months, we were flat broke. I didn't care, we were havin' fun."

Kenzie just looks at him as he talks.

"I wish I was like him. I wish I could just keep movin' all the time. But I'm just not... built like that."

"Everyone I grew up with... it all happened to them. Now, it's gonna happen to us. We're all so fucked. This world is fucked. I mean, what's the point? We'll just march to some new place and somebody else will die. It's never gonna stop. And eventually, it'll be our turn."

Kenzie is saddened hearing this.

Kenzie got closer to Nick and looked him straight in the eyes.

"No Nick, we will make it, you can't lose hope, and you can't give up. I'm sorry you have lost people, believe me I have lost people to, my parents, my friends but, I won't give up hope because I still have Niki. You shouldn't give up hope either because you still have the group, Luke, and...me."

Nick looked at her with wide eyes "What did you just say?"

"Don't give up hope…" Kenzie wrap her arms around Nick and hugged him.

"... Because you still have everyone and Luke, they're family. So don't give up, I promise we will make it."

Kenzie stopped hugging Nick and looked him in the eyes again.

She kinda liked his blue eyes. She blushes a little bit.

She smiled at him and reached out her hand.

"Let's go…"

"You're right…"

Kenzie gets up, Nick takes another drink and then, stands up too.

"Hey, kid."

Nick was offering her a drink. Kenzie didn't want to be rude but, she doesn't drink alcohol.

"No thanks, Nick." Kenzie said

Nick looks at her "If we get separated...the cabin's only about half a mile from here. You can't miss it."

Nick drinks again and smiled "You ready?"

Kenzie nods her head and smiles back at him.

They walked over to the doors and Kenzie moves the box out of the way.

"Fuck it." Nick said

Kenzie opens the door and they both walk out, Nick was behind her.

They were walking quietly but, a walker was about to grab Kenzie.

Nick hits the walker in the head with the jar in his hand.

"Ha! Fuck you, motherfucker!"

The other walkers turn around and started walking towards them.

"Oh shit…"

Kenzie backs up a little bit and she sees Nick look down at her.

He runs and stops a few feet away from her "Hey! Over here! C'mon, you fucks! Look at me!"

The walkers started walking towards Nick. He was leading them away from Kenzie.

Nick looked at her "Get the fuck out of here!"

No, she wasn't going to leave him here.

Kenzie runs over to Nick and grabs his arm. He tries to push her away but, she pulls him with all her strength.

She pulls him into the woods and they started running.


	9. Chapter 9 - Stuck in a Truck

**Niki's Point Of View**

Niki and Pete had ran into the woods. Niki was thinking about what Kenzie said.

" _We'll meet you back at the cabin!"_

But, they couldn't go back to the cabin yet. They have to get away from the walkers first.

They found an old truck and go were banging on the doors. Pete makes sure the doors are closed tightly.

"Well, they shouldn't be able to get through that. On the down side, we can't get through them."

Pete sits down, he is leaning against the wall of the truck.

Niki nods her head and sits down. She looks at the bite on Pete's leg. He was bitten…

"What're you lookin' at? Staring ain't polite."

"What are you going to do?" Niki asked

Pete looks around and then, looks at the saw that was near Niki.

"Hand me that thing there."

Niki was slient and didn't say anything. She just grabs the saw and gives it to Pete.

Niki looks away as Pete was about to cut off his leg. But then, he just puts the saw on the ground.

"I'II bleed out, what are you gonna do, carry me out on your back? Hell…just…just give me a minute."

"Try to get some rest. I'II try to find something to help." Niki said

Pete closed his eyes for a second. Niki started looking around the truck.

Niki went to the front of the truck and turned the key but, nothing happened.

"Outta gas." Pete said

Then, Niki looked in a box. It had a bunch of cigarettes boxes in it. She picks one up and looks at it.

"Pretty sure that dad smoked some of these long time ago." She said to herself

"What's in there? Anything we can use?"

Niki shows Pete one of the cigarette boxes.

"Gimme one of those."

Niki gets up and gives the small box to Pete.

"Gonna light?" Pete asked as he takes a cigarette out of the small box.

Niki took a lighter out of her pocket. She found it while looking earlier. She lights the cigarette, Pete smokes it and starts to cough.

"Well that tastes as bad as it smells."

"What now?" Niki asked

Pete smokes again "We wait."

Niki sits near the box and closes her eyes.

She is hoping Kenzie is okay.

* * *

 _-A few hours later -_

Niki opens her eyes and sees Pete laying on the ground. She picks up the saw in case he was dead.

She gets up and walks toward Pete.

"Pete…?" Niki said

Pete starts coughing, Niki puts down the saw and kneels down next to him. Pete sits up and leans against the wall of the truck again.

"Damnit…you wanna hear somethin' funny? I've been thinkin' and I don't wantin' die. I'm scared, Niki."

Niki was sad hearing this.

"Can you...can you promise me that you and Kenzie will look out for Nick? I love that stupid kid. No matter what you think, he is a good boy."

"We'll do what we can." Niki said

"Thank you."

It was silent for a few seconds.

"It's been a day, they ain't gonna find us."

Pete opens the doors and looks out.

"I'm not gonna make it out of this. You're gonna have to make a break for it."

"You're coming with me." Niki said

"What for? To die a few hours later than now?"

"To say goodbye to Nick."

"All right." Pete said as he got up "Well as my daddy used to say, we're burnin' daylight. Let's get this over with."

They open the doors and get out of the truck.

A walker comes near them and they started to run but, Pete falls to the ground.

Niki goes back for him and helps him up.

"Go on now, find my nephew."

Niki wasn't going to leave him behind.

She grabs his arm and pulls him into the woods.

* * *

They stopped for a minute and Niki let's go of Pete's arm.

She puts his arm over her shoulder and he leans against her so, he won't fall over again.

"Why'd you do that for?" he asked

Niki looks at the ground and then, she looks at Pete.

"I found my parents dead and I didn't get to say goodbye...I know you and Nick care about each other...I am not going to let you die...not until you said goodbye to him." she said to Pete

Pete just nods his head.

They slowly walk in the woods and towards the cabin.


	10. Chapter 10 - Don't Forget That

**Kenzie's Point Of View**

Nick and Kenzie ran until they were at the cabin.

"Do you think they are alright?" He asked as he was panting.

"Yeah, I think Niki and Pete ran away from them, maybe they are hiding and waiting it out."

Nick nods his head and they walk inside.

Rebecca and Carlos are there.

"Kenzie...Nick...are you alright? Luke not with you?"

"Where's Alvin!?"

"What happened?"

"We were chased by lurkers but, we ran. We don't know where Niki and Pete is." Kenzie said

"Where were you...where were you exactly!?"

"Down by the stream." she said

"We gonna go!"

"Just hold on a minute…"

"My husband is still out there...GET. THE. GUNS."

"Luke and Alvin went out looking for you. I told them not to go. Damnit Luke!"

Carlos gives Rebecca a rifle and she walks out but, Carlos turns around.

"Kenzie...Nick...can you...can you please watch Sarah...just distract her and don't tell her anything!"

"It's okay you can trust us." she said to him

"Thank you... you'll be safe inside...don't open the doors for anything...we'll be back soon."

After saying this, Carlos walks out the door and closes it behind him.

* * *

Kenzie and Nick were sitting on the couch, waiting for the others to come back.

Kenzie heard something and got up.

She saw Niki and Pete come in through the kitchen door.

Niki helped Pete into a room and helped him lay down on the bed too.

Nick goes into the room.

Kenzie and Niki leave the room and were standing in the living room.

"Niki!" Kenzie said with a smile.

She hugged her and Niki wrapped her arms around her.

They stopped hugging after a few minutes and were both smiling.

* * *

Kenzie walked towards the room and saw the door was opened a little bit.

She heard Nick and Pete talking.

"Uncle Pete…" Nick said in a sad voice.

"Nick...sometimes you gotta play a role, even if the people you love hate you for it. Don't forget that…" Pete said

"I won't…"

It was silent for a few seconds.

"Goodbye…" Nick said

Kenzie heard a gunshot and a sad look went on her face.

She went into the room and saw Nick drop the gun, it falls to the floor. He collapses onto his knees.

He had his hat over his eyes and he was crying.

Kenzie walked over to him and fell to her knees too.

She hugged him and wrapped her arms around him, she was crying too.

He grabbed her arm and looked at her.

She saw the tears in his eyes.

"Thank you." He said

She just smiled at him.


	11. Chapter 11 - Hiding

**Kenzie's Point Of View**

Kenzie walked out of the room.

She saw a shadow in the window.

Niki and Sarah came downstairs. Nick came out of the room.

Someone was at the front door.

"Hello…?"

"Carver…" Nick said

Kenzie grabbed Niki "go back upstairs, take Sarah with you and hide." she whispered in her ear.

Niki nods her head and grabs Sarah's hand. They go back upstairs.

Kenzie and Nick go back in the room.

Kenzie puts a blanket over Pete's body.

They hear the front door open.

Kenzie's eyes widened as Nick pulls her into the closet, he closes the door.

The closet was small so, they were close to each other.

Kenzie was shaking a little bit with fear.

She is scared so, she hugs Nick and grabs some of his shirt with her other hand.

Her head was on his chest, she could hear his heart beating fast, he was scared too.

But, Carver didn't come into the room.

They heard him go upstairs.

"Niki and Sarah…" Kenzie said in a whispered, panicked voice.

* * *

 **Niki's Point Of View**

They were in Nick's room, under the bed.

A picture of Sarah was on the floor.

Niki's eyes widened as she quickly grabbed the picture and put it in her pocket.

Sarah's breath was starting to go faster, she was having a panic attack.

"Sarah, calm down, he'll find us if you don't be quiet. Shh...it's okay…" Niki whispered

Sarah started to calm down.

Carver came into the room.

Niki put her hand over Sarah's mouth and she held her tightly.

Carver looked around and then, left the room.

 _-A few minutes later -_

Carver left the cabin.

They waited a little while longer and then, they got out from under the bed.

Niki walked downstairs with Sarah behind her.

Kenzie and Nick came out of the room.

They all sat down and waited for the others to come back.

* * *

 **Sorry the chapter is short, the next chapter will be longer.**


	12. Chapter 12 - We Need To Leave

_Carver left the cabin._

 _They waited a little while longer and then, they got out from under the bed._

 _Niki walked downstairs with Sarah behind her._

 _Kenzie and Nick came out of the room._

 _They all sat down and waited for the others to come back._

 **Niki's Point Of View**

Luke and the others walk in. Sarah runs up and hugs her dad. She was about to say something but, Nick stopped her.

"Carver was here…" he said

"What!?"

"What did he say? And you just let him in!?"

"We didn't open the door, he just came in." Niki said as she glared at Rebecca.

"She's telling the truth!"

"We all were hiding, he didn't see any of us." Kenzie said

"What do you think? Did it seem like he'd be coming back?" Luke asked as he looked at Kenzie and Niki.

"Maybe." Niki said

"We got lucky. He wasn't expecting to find us. Well, he was too smart to stick around. But, he'll be back with the rest. We don't have much time."

"He's right, everyone pack up. We're movin' out."

Alvin walked out of the kitchen.

"Alvin, wait!" Rebecca said as she followed him.

Carlos looked at Sarah "We have to leave now, sweetie. Before he comes back with more bad guys. But it's gonna be okay. Let's just go get your things."

"Why did you leave his camp?" Niki asked

"Because we had to. William Carver is a dangerous man. He is a leader of a camp not far from here and he is very smart. We were...lucky to escape. You two will be safer with us. We have to leave."

After that, Carlos and Sarah left the kitchen.

The only ones in there were Niki, Kenzie, Nick, and Luke.

Luke looked at Nick and got a sad look on his face.

He walked up to him and hugged him.

"Pete's dead." Nick said in a sad voice.

Kenzie had a sad look on her face.

"I know, man I do. We gotta get movin', okay?"

"Yeah…"

They stopped hugging and Luke left the kitchen too.

"Everybody grab your stuff. Let's hit the road." Luke said

* * *

 **Kenzie's Point Of View**

Before they left, Rebecca pulled Kenzie and Niki aside.

"Sorry if I gave you guys some shit back there. I'm just a little on edge."

"It's okay, Rebecca." Kenzie said

Niki just glared and she was gonna say something but, Kenzie hit her arm.

Then, Niki just signed.

"If it's not you two I'm yellin' at lately, it's Alvin, and then I'm in real trouble."

"We can handle it. We're not little kids." Niki said

"I felt the same way when I was your age. My dad was always givin' me shit and I always thought he didn't know a damn thing. I know you two did your best back there. You know, none of us when make it out here on our own. Sometimes it's hard knowing just how dependent I am on everyone. I'm not used to that. I'm not comfortable with that. I'm supposed to be a mom soon. Guess I need to work on my patience."

Kenzie smiled at Rebecca.

After that, they all left the cabin.

* * *

They were all walking, Kenzie was up at the front of the group with Niki and Luke.

"Hey, Kenzie…"

Kenzie turned around and saw Nick was behind her.

"...I just wanted to say...thanks for not giving up on me." Nick said with a smile.

"Don't worry about it, Nick." Kenzie said as she smiled back at him.

Nick nods his head and then, he gets a sad look on his face. He starts walking slower.

Nick was at the back now, walking with his head down.

"What happened back there at the cellar?" Luke asked

" _Don't give up hope…" Kenzie wrap her_ _arms around Nick and hugged him._

" _... Because you still have everyone and Luke, they're family. So don't give up, I promise we will make it."_

 _Kenzie stopped hugging Nick and looked him in the eyes again._

 _She kinda liked his blue eyes. She blushes a little bit._

 _She smiled at him and reached out her hand._

" _Let's go…"_

Kenzie smiled to herself.

"He got drunk." she said, almost laughing. "But, he also saved my life."

"Really?"

 _They were walking quietly but, a walker was about to grab Kenzie._

 _Nick hits the walker in the head with the jar in his hand._

" _Ha! Fuck you, motherfucker!"_

"Yeah…" she said, still smiling.

"I'm worried about that kid. Keep an eye on him for me, would you?"

Kenzie nods her head.

Luke looked at Kenzie and Niki.

"You...sure you still wanna come with us?" he asked

"Yeah, we're with you guys." Kenzie said

"Do we got much choice?" Niki asked

Luke laughed and Niki smiled a little bit too.

"I figure we got about four or five days to reach those mountains. Now, if they're trackin' us, we should be able to lose 'em up there." Luke said as he showed them a map.

"Five days?"

"It's gonna be okay, Bec."

"We have to keep moving now. It's our only choice."

Kenzie looks behind her and sees a sad Nick.

Nick…


	13. Chapter 13 - Are You Okay?

_Kenzie looks behind her._

 _Nick…_

Nick was still sad about uncle Pete's death and was hanging his head down, walking slowly, he was behind the group.

Kenzie decided to go talk to him. She slowed down and started to walk beside him. He hadn't noticed her yet until she started to talk to him.

"Hey Nick…"

Nick looked over and saw Kenzie, he smiled at her. She smiled back at him.

"You don't know much about me so, ask me any questions you want." Kenzie said

"Really?"

"Yep…"

Kenzie thought getting to know each other would make Nick a little happier.

"Ok...how old are you?"

"I am 16 and Niki is 15."

"You guys are young but, act older than you are."

Kenzie laughed "Niki is younger than me but, she acts older than me."

Kenzie looks at Nick "how old are you?"

"24."

Kenzie nods her head.

"Has your friend...Niki always been mean and kinda cold?"

"That's just her personality...she won't admit it but, she secretly cares for people."

Nick nods his head "Favorite color?"

"Blue."

Nick smiles a little bit more "I like dark blue."

Kenzie smiled as Nick asked her another question.

"Favorite hobby?"

"Singing."

"You sing?"

Kenzie nods her head again "A little bit, you?"

"When Luke and I were drunk, we would sing."

Kenzie laughs and Nick gets a wider smile.

"Favorite food?"

Kenzie gets a wider smile too "Candy!"

"Candy is not a food!"

"Yes it is!"

They both started to laugh. Kenzie smiled and thought it was good to hear Nick laugh.

Nick turned to Kenzie again after, he was done laughing "So, favorite candy?"

"Hershey Cookies and Cream...and Niki's favorite is Swedish Fish Candy."

Nick and Kenzie kept smiling and laughing as they were walking, deep in conversation.

Luke and Niki were both looking back at them, they both were smiling.

* * *

 _-A few minutes later -_

"Nick...you okay?" Kenzie asked

"I don't know…" he said, he was still sad.

Kenzie nods and puts her hand on his shoulder, he tenses up but then, relaxes.

Nick looks at her "I gonna tell you something."

"What is it?"

"After I said sorry to you...I didn't leave...I was listening in on your conversation with Luke…" he said

Kenzie smiled "oh really?"

Nick looked down "sorry…"

"No need to be sorry...so, you heard everything?"

Nick nods his head again and looked sad because of what he heard.

" _Niki and I were in middle school when this all happened. We were in class just laughing and talking when we heard screaming coming from outside. Everyone started panicking and most ran out of the classroom. We heard more screaming as we left the class. There was blood everywhere, we grabbed our friends and left the school."_

" _We went to my house first but, my parents were dead and Niki's house was next door as we went. Her parents were dead too but, they looked worse than mine. We grabbed a lot of supplies. We made a group with our friends and we all tried to make it but, it didn't work out in the end. It all went wrong...Lucy commit suicide, Janet ran off with most of the supplies. Ruby, Marky, and Olivia...they all died."_

 _She started to cry "It was only me and Niki left...we decided to try the woods...to see if it was safe…"_

Nick looked at her again, with worry in his eyes.

"How old were you?" He asked

Kenzie looked confused "When what…?"

"When this hell started."

"14" she said

Nick was saddened by this thought, having to grow up in a world like this when you're still young. "Damn…"

"But, it's not all bad...I still have Niki…"

Nick nods his head "I get it...I don't know what I would do without Luke…"

Kenzie looked at Niki and smiled at her best friend. Niki saw this and smiled back.


	14. Chapter 14 - I'm Here For You

_-The Next Day-_

Kenzie was still walking next to Nick at the back of the group.

She thought she saw someone or something in the woods.

"Is something wrong, Kenzie?" Nick asked

"I thought I saw something…" Kenzie said

"Hey guys, stop for a second."

"What is it, Nick?" Luke asked

"Kenzie thinks she sees something." he said

Niki saw a shadow in the woods.

"Ok, who ever you are, come out!" Niki said

"I guess I have no choice then." someone said

A guy came out of the woods.

He had white hair and dark blue eyes with white skin. He was wearing a black shirt with black and white stripes on the sleeves, black pants with black converse.

And he had a sickle in his hand.

"My name is Asher but, people call me Ash." he said

Everyone was just looking at him.

"So, can I join your group or…?" Asher asked

"No! For all we know, you could be with Carver!" Rebecca said

"Bec, calm down…" Alvin said

"I don't know who the hell you're talking about, I have been alone all this time." he said

"Listen, you can come with us for now." Luke said

"Cool." Asher said

They started walking again.

Asher was walking by Kenzie and Nick.

"So, how old are you?" Kenzie asked

Asher smiled "17. You?"

"Oh, I'm 16." she said

Niki was looking at them.

Kenzie and Asher were deep in conversation while they were walking.

* * *

 _-Four Days Later -_

"There's the bridge." Niki said

"And does it look passable?" Luke asked

"I think so." she said

"Good."

Niki gets after the rock and stands by Luke.

"We have to cross that bridge. Let's go."

"Hold on now, we can't all go sprinting across that thing, okay? If we get spotted out there, we're gonna be trapped."

"Going around that lake will take too long."

"Right, but...look, we've got no idea who's out there. Okay, I'm gonna sneak across and make sure it's clear before we bring the whole group over."

"You think splitting the group is a good idea?"

"I never said it was a good idea. But it's better than riskin' everyone at once."

"What's your plan?"

"Niki and I can scoot across low and slow and make sure nobody's waitin' for us on the other side."

"We'll have a tough time covering for you from back here."

"Well, we'll just turn back if it gets hairy."

"Niki should stay here, she's…"

"She's what?"

"She just a little girl, Luke."

"She's a valuable little girl."

"I can do it and I'm not a little girl." Niki said as she glared at both of them.

"See, no problem."

"It's gonna be fine. Okay? We'll signal you guys in ten minutes. Just watch for a light on the far side."

"I can go too..." Nick said

"You stay with the group."

"I'm fine, Luke. I can help you guys."

Luke just shakes his head and starts to walk away.

"If something happens, I'II cover you."

Luke looks at Niki "come on."

They both walk away towards the bridge.

* * *

Nick was sitting on the ground, alone.

Kenzie walked over and sat down next to him.

He looks lost in thought.

She gets a sad look on her face and then, she puts her hand on his shoulder. He tenses up but then, he relaxes and looks at her.

"Are you okay?" Kenzie asked

"I'm fine." Nick said

"No you're not, I know you're sad. I'm sorry about Pete." she said

"If it wasn't for you and Niki, I wouldn't of gotten to say goodbye to him."

Kenzie smiles at him "Well, i'm here for you and we can talk anytime you want."

"Thanks." Nick said with a small smile.


End file.
